Opio takeover hits snag

The takeover of Opio Forestry Fund is proving problematic because the fund's trustee is not releasing the register of unitholders.

City Forests, a trading arm of the Dunedin City Council, has mailed the 85c a unit bid for Opio, and Perpetual Trustees has advised unitholders not to sell pending advice due next Monday.

The trustee is passing on communication from City Forests but will not release the register. City Forests has written to the NZX seeking support for the release of the register.

"We're still working with the trustee and trying to secure an electronic copy of the register," said City Forests chief executive Phil Taylor.

Perpetual's chief executive, Peter Baynes, said City Forests would not get the register because the trust deed and the law were clear that it should not be released except to unitholders checking their own details.

"This is entirely about what we believe our responsibilities are," he said.

Opio values its forests in its annual report at $1.02 a unit but City Forests contests the log prices, cashflow discount rate and harvest profile used in that valuation.